Baggin' a Squaw

So for Memorial Day I went with my roommate Ken, T-Rav, his wife Kelly, and her sister Krust (it's really Christi, but you know...) and hiked Squaw Peak in Provo. This has been a hike I've wanted to do for a long time, just hadn't gotten around to it. It was good. A nice return to hiking after living at 200ft for the past 3 months. The hike took about 4 hours, so was probably around 8 miles long (4 each way).
Then I went to a Bar-B-Q and saw a whole lotta friends I hadn't seen in a long time. It seems that not only are most of my friends now married, they also either already have kids or are expecting.

Defying the Laws of Physics

I'm back.
It was a long trip. From the Air Force base in Kuwait, I took a bus to the Kuwait International Airport. After stumbling around for a few minutes, I finally hooked up with a travel agent who got me tickets all the way back to Salt Lake City. But, between this and the security guys going through all my luggage, I ended up missing my flight to London.
So I got a hotel in downtown Kuwait City, and crashed. I enjoyed the rest of the day napping, eating, and wandering around downtown. Walked down to Kuwait Bay, at the North end of the Perian Gulf.

The next day I woke up at 5 AM, got going to the airport, caught my flight, and off I went. 7 hours to London, then 8 hours to Chicago, then a long delay in Chicago, and 3 hours back to Salt lake. Trav and Kel were kind enough to pick me up at 2 AM when I rolled in exhausted.
All told, I travelled about 32 hours. 30 of which were in 1 day.
Umm... there was some discussion as to whether or not the blog will continue. It will. It probably won't be every day, but rather once or twice a week. Hopefully some of you will continue to read and enjoy hearing about my experiences.

Kuwait

So I finally left Balad. I took a good look around before I got on the plane - I doubt I'll be back in Iraq anytime soon. After sitting around for ~5 hours, I left Balad about 4 in the afternoon and flew to a US Air Force base in Kuwait. Now I have to wait between 6 and 10 hours for some grunt to run my passport over to the Kuwaiti officials, get it stamped, bring it back, so I can get off base and get to the international airport. I've been waiting about 5 so far - I'll probably go check on it in a few minutes.
Anyways, here's the plan right now. Get the stamp, go to the airport in Kuwait City, get a flight for either London or Frankfurt. Get there, go to a hotel, and rest for awhile - maybe go look around at stuff, and arrange my flight back to Salt Lake. Then get back. But! I figure somewhere in there, I'll probably spend a day site seeing, depending on flight times and such (I'm already over 50 hours for the week, so I should be OK).
See ya'll real soon.

I hate this

I'm still in Balad. After a horrendous experience last night (I was up well over 32 hours trying to get a flight- only to be kicked to the curb with nothing), tonight I had to deal with a Moron that wouldn't let me fly straight to Germany. Plus, all the flights keep filling to capacity, and I keep getting bumped. Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day. In the meantime, at least I continue to earn money for all this trouble.
I'm going to go sleep for a few hours now. I need to be back at 8 AM to check for tomorrow's flights.

Destination: ?

So my replacement is due to arrive in a little over an hour. This morning I did some wash, packed my bags, cleaned my room, and got a work out in. I'm hoping to catch a flight anywhere tomorrow - but Germany would be really nice. Or Spain. OK, so anywhere would be nice at this point. Of course, it could take a few days to get out. Lots of servicemen are trying to get out right now.
I did take a few minutes today to visit this sweet tank we have on base. An old Iraqi tank - I went a little bit inside, but it was a mess, and I have an aversion to lockjaw.

Honor

K... so I didn't take this picture, though I was present when it was taken. You can see a poor Iraqi girl running barefoot up to the fence to ask for candy. With all the talk on the news of "What's wrong with the War", or "Why we shouldn't even be in Iraq" it's easy to forget the kids caught in the middle. And regardless of whether or not those anti-war sentiments have validity (I believe some do), the fact is that if our troops leave now, this little girl and others will suffer because of religous fanatics.

It's easy to put that point aside - but I think if we have any Honor we have to stay in Iraq. Maybe we change stategy, sure. Whatever it takes. Just so long as the kids in the field and in the hospitals get to live in a better place.
My replacement should be here tomorrow night. Hopefully I'll leave on Saturday.

Going Postal

So today I mailed a trunk of swag home to myself. This swag was all the stuff they gave me when I got here - my Gore-Tex stuff, a fleece, some polypro shirts, a first-aid kit I found, and some other odds and ends. I really really hope it makes it back safe, 'cause that's some nice stuff.
Also, the other guy finally caught a flight out today. Only took him 3 days to catch a flight. Us contractors are very lowest on the totem pole, and with 5000 US Air Force guys trying to get out, makes it tough to catch a flight.
Heard a big boom today. Apparently the anti-mortar gun shot a mortar mid-air, and it detonated right then - mid air. I was inside, but it was close enough I could tell it's general location.
Other than that, just another day.

90 days

Today was my 90th day. Now as soon as my replacement gets here I'll begin the journey home. I'm not sure getting out will be as easy as getting in was - one guy I work with has already waited 2 days. Of course, seeing him wait I can already realize a better way to do the waiting, so maybe I'll get out quicker. Still, the base is doing a complete Air Force swap out right now, so maybe not.
So the temp today was 105 in the shade - about 115 in the sun. I worked out in it for an hour and a half, and it wore me out for the rest of the day. But the slurpie like thing I drank when I finished helped a lot.
I really want out of here. It's time.

Haije

So a whole bunch of new GI's are arriving. The guys I've been here with are all leaving withing the next two weeks, so we're all taking off at the same time. Some of us took some pictures tonight - here's one of a dirty Haije (Ha-Jee), which is how the individual terrorists are referred to over here. Kinda like Charlie in Vietnam.
Yesterday, I did try to post, but the internet was way slow due to Mother's Day. I had a delightful Mother's Day. I taught Sunday School - the lesson was on Faith. Plus I called my Mother and told her I love her. I hope you all did the same, 'cause if not Chuck Norris might hurt you.

Definition of Crazy

So tonight while I was at dinner, someone decided to throw an IED (Improvised Explosive Device - what they do roadside bombs with) over our perimeter fence. Messed me up about an hour getting back from dinner, since the spot they threw it is right between my work and the chow hall. A real pain.
Now, to me this just indicates a probing of our base security, and probably our response patterns. But it also shows just how nuts these people are. To walk up and toss a bomb over a fence, with motion detectors and guards all around? Straight crazy.
Oh, today it hit 103 in the shade. It was about 115-120 in the sun. Nice and toasty.

Get me out.

Today was a pretty standard day. While there were some attacks, nothing super close to me.
I did wake up in kind of a foul mood - I think more than anything I just want to get out of here. I'm ready - at least to know when I'm headed home. At this point I'm hoping to be back in time for church a week from Sunday - but that's just a hope. It may not be until a week after that. Kinda frustrating not knowing.
But, on a good note, today was payday, and that always makes me happy. I should have at least 1 more big paycheck coming to me.

Blue Skies

So today was a picture perfect day. Mid 80s, blue skies, slight breeze. It was great! I went outside and read for awhile, my equipment ran well. Reading about Lewis and Clark gave me a desire to kayak/canoe from Yellowstone to Pittsburgh. That'd be pretty sweet. Maybe someday.
On a disappointing note, there were a ton of choppers landing at the hospital today. I don't think today was a good day for the good guys. Both medevac and non-medevac landing like crazy.
I usually think it's more serious when a non-medevac chopper is coming in, because that I think shows they didn't have time to call in the medevac, but maybe there's other issues involved.

Fixin' stuff.

Trying to think about what I did in the past 14 hours is taxing. I know I had to work from ~9PM to midnight fixing some stuff. That wasn't too cool. Finally left work sometime around 12:45. I'm very tired. And hungry.
So today's only real adventure (besides fixing stuff that needed fixin') was working out in the rain. I just didn't care anymore - besides, every once in a while, jumping rope in the rain is theraputic. At least, that's what Confucious says.
I do find it amusing that all of the other people that I work with get stopped on their bikes by Air Force Officers trying to enforce their idea of base policy (which are not actual policies) while I openly ride with my helmet hanging on the side of my bike, race cars, jump curbs, and ride way too fast thru the housing area, yet haven't been stopped once.

Life's a Garden

I'm really getting tired of the food here. It almost made me ralph tonight, but I stayed strong. I think I've just been eating the same stuff for too long. I very much look forward to some Papa John's pizza and a Sobe. mmm... Sobe...
So here's a little tid-bit about Ryan some of you might not know. I'm pretty much addicted to Sobe - especially the strawberry ones. Especially after mountain biking. They just go together - I can't explain it any better. I've been known to go thru 3 or 4 on a hot summer day. Also, having been in the war zone now for a few months, I'm convinced there is only one way to truly conquer the insurgents and Al Queda. Chuck Norris. http://www.chucknorrisfacts.com/
And if anyone disagrees, you better pray Chuck has mercy.

You can't have No in your Heart

Today was a good day. All of my equipment worked today, I helped a few people out, read some (I just started Undaunted Courage about Lewis and Clark). Worked out in a dust storm. You know, same old same old.
Tonight I almost wiped out on my bike - I was riding home, and I'm too cheap to buy new batteries for my headlight (since I leave in a week), so I didn't see the sign post that had fallen down. But I rode over it, and I didn't fall, so it's all good.
Anyways, tomorrow should be an exciting day. I'm doing the same thing I did today. Read, listen to music, workout. It's a rough life.

A day off

Today was technically a day off. I only worked 8 hours today. But a lot of that was just driving around the base, looking for a new area where we could put our stuff. For some reason I can't quite understand, they think it might be wise to move us.
Frankly, I think this is just another example of a beauracratic military of a beauracratic nation wasting time and money on stuff that doesn't matter. (We won't really move, this is just a game people play). But hey, as the recipient of money ill spent, I'll stop that train of thought right now.
All in all, today was pretty laid back. I attended church, watched the Oscar de la Hoya fight, and read. I also got on the waiting list to get out of here. They presently want me to go through Quatar - I'd prefer Europe... we'll see how it goes.

Fun in the Sun

So for about 10 days, we didn't see the sun here. It was constantly overcast, but not with clouds, with dust. Sand. It was way gross - and hot. Even if the wind was blowing, it didn't help.
But the sun came out, and it feels great. I read outside for about an hour and a half, right before we had a braut-bar-b-q, with brauts straight from Germany. It was great.
Came back, called my family to let them know I'm alive and doing good - then just hung out. Once again I had to do some work later on - some of our equipment is acting weird about 10:30 every night lately.
Oh, and my task for tomorrow? Find a new path for riding to work. Apparantly they don't want bikes or pedestrians out by the F-16s and BlackHawks. I guess they feel that having us walk/ride home on an unlit perimeter road all alone is a much 'safer' option. So, I'm going to look for a path - I figure if I can go running and mountain biking on deer trails in Utah, I can probably find a line in the dirt I can follow here.

Reputation

So I'm gaining a reputation as a 'go-to' guy out here. The guy to ask if something is busted. The one that is asked about policies and stuff. Kinda nice to be able to help out, and to know that you can get the job done when it needs doin'.
Other than that, my life has been pretty basic the past day or two. I work, sometimes I fix stuff, I read, and I work out. That's it. Today I watched Last of the Mohicans, which always makes for a good day. No crazy alarms or anything.
So, it's become quite the ordeal to not read anything about Lost. Arggh!!! Hopefully I'll be able to catch up before the season finale - if I even get home before the season finale.
I've been told there will be no water tomorrow... I guess we'll see how that goes.

Cutting Logs

So all day I had a hard time staying awake. First of all, I had to wake up early. But even if I didn't have to wake up early, I probably would've been awake. Which brings me to reason #2 - my roommate was snoring WAY loud last night. Kept me awake half the night. Many of you already know I don't like the man. This probably did not aid that cause. Probably.
Aside from being tired, today was a pretty good day. I read some, I fell asleep reading the Liahona, worked out (it was 95 degrees today - pretty hot for an hour 1/2 workout outside.
Oh, and today marked the first time I had to take immediate cover because of an 'Incoming' alarm. Usually I'm inside the bunker, or close enough I can step inside it. But today I was inside this hut I workout in (there's a heavy bag in there). So I lay on the hut floor next to a wall and covered my head. It blew up a long ways away from me, which is good.

Revenge of the Bird

So the bird got it's revenge on me. I went to clean up the pooh it had left in my work out area, and when I went in, it flew out. So there I am, cleaning up, when I see it's built a nest in the rafters. I of course take my broom and remove the nest, and hear 'Splat'. Splat of course being the sound an egg makes when it smashes on the floor. There was some yolk, and some blood, and a little bit of bird fecal matter.
Thus, I eliminated the bird problem, but the bird got it's revenge by making me feel almost bad about killing it's unborn fetus. Not that I really feel bad, and yes, I would have done it anyway. But the score is now Bird 2, Ryan 0. Dirty bird.
In other news, I got some stuff arrange between me and management, and I won't be leaving before the 17th. So the 17th or shortly thereafter. Still that's only 2 weeks. I'm excited.

Got the Shirt

Couple of cool things happenend today. I put up 250 pds on the bench and got the shirt, which was pretty cool. After being slightly worried, it went up like butter. Nice and smooth. I'll bet I'd get close to 275, but they don't have a shirt for it, and I don't care enough to do it without a tangible reward.
Then I went to a re-enlistment ceremony for one of the GI's in my unit. The re-enlistment oath is actually a fairly stirring oath. http://usmilitary.about.com/od/joiningthemilitary/l/blenlistoath.htm
After the ceremony, we had a sweet tour of an F-16, and the colonel giving the tour described each weapon with a considerable amount of detail. It was pretty sweet.
And! I got a package from my mother today! Inside were some candies, and some sweet books, and of course a spanish Liahona magazine. Oh, and how could I forget, a Rascal Flats CD, which I'm assuming was my sister Staci's contribution, since they tend to be more of a teenage girl country band. I tried to listen to it, I promise, but I didn't make it thru the 3rd track. Maybe I could work on my patience by listening to it. But maybe that'd be just enough to make me snap... probably not worth the risk.